Your experience with china traktors

[gluehstrumpf]

Hallo Forum,
i`m form germany. I`m intereseted in a china traktor. Here in Germany i dont know what is true by the horror-stories of chinesee produkts.
So please help me in my decission :

For working fire wood, i need a small traktor max. length 2800mm, width 1270mm. For safety by working i want to use max width.
I found Jimna 204, Lenar204, Mahindra 204, the dimesnsions are good, speed is good, power is enough

What`s your really experience to these traktors?
Which one is better? Wy is it better? Problems with it?

best regards
Gluehstrumpf

 

[bp fick]

Welcome to TBN.

When it comes to manufacturing, and quality manufacturing of industrial commercial or agricultural products, some thing are obvious. The world likes German engineered products. American too. Japanese? Yes, very much.

Now, who is "up and coming"? Who is advancing? Obviously, the South Koreans. Mahindra is an Indian tractor company that is growing on the international scene. The do employ a considerable amount of Korean and Japanese technology, engines, etc.

When you put the world's most famous tractor names on a list, the top companies would have to include Fiat which markets under many divisions and brand names around the world, including owning New Holland.

John Deere, Kubota, Massey Ferguson, Landini, Iseki, Yanmar, DaeDong, all these are top names and well respected products, proven products along with dealer support, repair facilities and parts availability. Proven.

Chinese tractors? Surely they are improving, but they have a long way to go to match the world's major manufacturers by any criteria. They are often priced below the top grade tractors. There are many reasons why that is so.

 

[creekbend]

The final decision is evidently going to be yours' in the end, but I sincerely doubt that you would receive satisfaction from any product, whether it is a tractor or anything else, if it was inferior and lacked quality engineered components. I say this from my personal experience. My parents met right after the war in Frankfurt. I was born in Salzburg, Austria several years later. I came to the United States when I was seven years old. Just my thoughts. Good Luck. Guten tag.

 

[kenmac]

The Chinese have a long way to go to get their quality up to par with the other brands. All one has to do is read the chinese tractor thread. Tractors with only a few hundred hrs with front end rebuilds, engine rebuilds, etc,

 

[doxford jim]

To put things in perspective, try checking out CTOA (Chinese Tractor Owners Association) and a few other websites.

I used to have a 1959 MF65 (petrol engine) 2 wheel drive tractor. It was old and was well used with over 11,000 hours on it. It was worth about $5000 with the FEL on it. At 45 hp it barely met my needs.

For around $14,000 I was able to buy a new 55 hp diesel engined Jinma 4x4 tractor with a Front End Loader. The tractor was new and yes, I had a few problems but they were all minor and none have cost me more than $200 to fix. Most of the problems I have had have been from the parts suppliers in the US and the greedy UPS shipping company - who I will never ever do business with again, in my lifetime.

Like any piece of machinery, it has to be maintained properly and good oils used for the transmission, engine and hydraulics. My Chinese Jinma tractor has worked well and I am more than happy with it considering what I paid for it.

Yes, there are better machines out there but they are much more than I can afford to pay (pensioner on a low fixed income). Had I lots of money I would no doubt have bought one of the bigger name brands, however money is an issue and I bought what I could afford.

There will be lemons in every make and price. If you go into the purchase of a Chinese made tractor with your eyes open, you will probably be just fine. Expect to do your own maintenance and repairs and you will save a lot of money - in my case about $20,000 or more.

There are a lot of posters who will decry anything other than what they have - owner loyalty ??? Everyone would like new but a large number of owners buy used. Buying used can be very expensive too, so in a way, it is a crap shoot.

Best advice is check out the different Chinese brands on the different websites - even this website has a section for Chinese and foreign tractors. Research will be your best tool. Try these other websites for general info:

Chinese Tractor Owners Association | "Helping Each Other With Knowledge"

CHINESE TRACTOR WORLD FORUMS - Login

CHINESE TRACTOR OWNERS CLUB FORUM - Home

Hope this helps in your quest for information. Don't be afraid of using the internet and if you buy, buy through a known dealer if possible.

Cheers

Jim

 

[kenmac]

Here's the front rebuild. You can see the quality of the steel gears here


http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/chinese-tractors/113843-kama-554-front-drive-repair.html



Same owner as above... 700 or 1000 hours on the tractor and having to rebuild the engine


http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/chinese-tractors/159299-engine-overhaul-kama-554-a.html

 

[gluehstrumpf]

Hallo Forum,

thank you all very much for your experiences!!!
In my case, it is i have only less money for this projekt, i cant pay twice at a bad tractor, this decission must fit.
IｴM 53 Jears old, the tractor has to run my life long, min 25 Jears. But in my case not realy hard working. I have no agriculture as i told you making firewood in the forest... It will run about 120 hours a year.
Length and width come from the rented building with is my garage for the traktor.
Used good mashines , may be Mitsubishi 2350fd i got one offered in Nederlands ( 800km away) one other 2050fd is in Hungaria also 900km away. this one would get a maintendence.
My problem is, i`m not able to go to the dealer and have a look to this offers.
An arround me, there are only old normal width traktors, or new ones much too expensive for me.
Theese Mitsubishi`s only make 15km/h , the Mahindra runs 30 km/h to drive 10 km to the forest it is a great differenz .

By using internet i found as an other way : import direktly. including shipping, taxes, fees,... the price will be 1/2 to 2/3 of the dealer prices. Also in such a way, a top product is nessecery.

Gluehstrumpf

 

[dennis52]

Be cautious about importing directly.
You will have no warranty or dealer support and local parts for your model may not be readily available.
My advice would be to stick with a known brand sold locally, buy second hand but firstly pay to get a reputable tractor mechanic to inspect the machine.

 

[Localmotion]

There seem to be a lot of people here who just want to knock Chinese brands, possibly without having even driven one themselves...

It is true that many Chinese models lack the refinement of better known brands, and it is also true that there are issues with quality control at many of the factories. However this is the very reason they are priced so affordable and when you compare prices of Chinese tractors against better known brands, they do represent excellent value for money - I would argue far better than some of the entry level or mid range tractors available from JD, MF, NH, Case etc....

As has been mentioned, you will need some mechanical knowledge as dealer support is very limited. However it is mis-leading for people to say you will not get warrenty - depending upon where you purchase the tractor, many European sellers will offer warrenty of Chinese tractors. In addition I know that Yancheng (the factory which makes Jinma) offer a 12 month factory warrenty - not long, but definately long enough to "snag" any issues which quality control have missed.

I am a dealer for Siromer tractors in Spain - Siromer is effectively a Jinma with a few factory fitted enhancements. When we first started selling here four years ago, many of the local farmers were sceptical about owning a Chinese tractor. However since seeing them working in the area, interest has grown - possibly because of the financial crisis here and the fact that a brand new Siromer costs less than €10,000 while a same spec John Deere costs over €20,000!

Here are a couple of videos of our own Siromer 204s (Jinma 204) working:

Siromer 204S & Loader - YouTube

Siromer 204s Ploughing / Siromer 204s Tractor arado - YouTube

The tractor in these videos is a 2007 Siromer with over 2500 hours on the clock and NO PROBLEMS to date :laughing: It has been abused - over worked and taken beyond it's design limits on a regualr basis, with no adverse effects.

Siromer will sell to Germany, and offer a warrenty subject to distance selling terms (ie: you pay transport for any parts from the UK). If you would like more info, just let me know or check out our website (link below).

Whether you eventually buy Chinese or not is your decisiosn - but please take a balanced view of the pro's and con's and not listen to the "bashers" who can clearly afford to throw money away just to say they own a JD or similar premier brand! :thumbsup:

 

[kenmac]

Not knocking Chinese brands. I just stated fact.. The quality of the chinese tractors are not even close to a JD,MF,NH,Case, Etc,. You want a cheap tractor . buy chinese. You want a tractor that will last. Buy a quality tractor. Quality tractor usually cost more $$. I tried out a new chinese tractor when I bought my 30 + yr old yanmar. I could have bought the new chinese tractor for about the same or less $$

 

[YanmarFever]

Im a tractor dealer, have been since the 90s.

For what its worth...

We do not take ANY chinese tractors in on trade, I don't care if its 1/10th the price we wont waste our time on it.

Stick with the major brand's.

 

[Monster5601]

Here are a couple of videos of our own Siromer 204s (Jinma 204) working:

Siromer 204S & Loader - YouTube

Siromer 204s Ploughing / Siromer 204s Tractor arado - YouTube

Given the amount of bilateral movement I saw in the first video of the FEL mounts, I say no thanks. That looks like it will go at anytime. Free wouldn't be cheap enough.

 

[Dr_Zinj]

I'd buy a Chinese-made tractor if I had a fully equipped garage/machine shop and plenty of free time.

My last tractor was an obsolete (no longer manufactured or supported) Kubota garden tractor that I spent more time fixing than using. While I don't object to doing repair work myself, I do know my limits.

 

[Diamondpilot]

I bought a Chinese tractor new on July 3rd 2003. It has been great. Its a Jinma 284 4x4. Replaced the battery and starter along with a thermostat. It has 900 hours and is very dependable, strong as can be, and easy to work on.

The main issues with them is the setup and prep. They will sell to anyone who claims to be a dealer and this gives them a very bad name. Yes, they are not as refined as a NH or JD but my 28HP tractor will out work a mid 30HP unit of any other brand. Simple reason is weight, gearing, and they rate them at a 12/hr average on PTO and gross HP, not peak like others.

I had the opportunity to put my 284 Jinma on a PTO dyno and it turned nearly 33HP but is only rated at 24.5 PTO HP.

By the way, my other tractor is a Ford 861. Rated at 45 HP but 2 wheel drive. The Jinma will flat out work it any day of the week other than pure PTO power. I put 125 hours per year on the Jinma and 3 hours last year on the Ford so that shows you which one I work.

Chris

 

[johnk]

Not knocking Chinese brands. I just stated fact.. The quality of the chinese tractors are not even close to a JD,MF,NH,Case, Etc,. You want a cheap tractor . buy chinese. You want a tractor that will last. Buy a quality tractor. Quality tractor usually cost more $$. I tried out a new chinese tractor when I bought my 30 + yr old yanmar. I could have bought the new chinese tractor for about the same or less $$

I had a chinese tractor and sold it at a huge loss just to get rid of it. I wanted to get work done not work on my tractor. You get what you pay for. If you don't mind cranking wrenches and having dependability buy Chinese. I know from experience...JMO.

 

[20 20]

I have to agree those bashing the the chinese tractors are the same ones that have never been on one, probably never even seen one. My little 254 jinma ran circles aorund a friends brand new NH, reason, his tractor had to be split to fix major problems. This does not make the NH a bad machine it shows that any tractor can be garbage. The dealers actual words to him were, "You must have got a friday or monday machine" then he shrugged and said oh well we'll fix it. It does run but he is constantly changing the hydro fluid because it turns milky. Of course the dealer looked it over and said there is nothing they can do.

I also own the little dozer and have to say it is one tough machine for its size. As some on here know I have put that little dozer through heck and back. I have no complaints and would definatley buy again, my non-brand money saving can go a long way elsewhere.

 

[g0rd0]

I have a year 2008 Jinma 284. Got it direct from china in a crate and did the finnal assmbly myself.
It took me 10&1/2 hrs to put it together. And then I had to run it in.
By run it in I mean start it and run for 5 minites, check for leaks and the opperation of f&r, 2wd/4wd, High and low, hydrolics and steering. Then drain everything! The engine oil, & the oil in the injector pump empty it and replace with diesel, drain the engine block and install a block heater then replace the water with 50/50 water and glycol. Drain the hydrolics and replace with diesel drain the PS and fill with diesel, now drain the rear end and front end and replace with diesel. Now start the tractor and for 5 minites use all 2wd & 4wd, Hi & low all gears f & r, cycle the hydrolics.
And now turn off the machine and drain all of that diesel from your PS, hydrolics, rear end, front end, engine and injector pump, replace the oil & hydrolic filters (it came with spares) and refill the engine and injector pump with the proper engine oil for your area, fill the front and rear end with good quality gear oil, and the PS and hydrolics with the proper hydrolic fluid for your area.
And after that before you get to 50 hours check the valve lash and torque your head bolts.
I have done that and the only complaint that I have is that in cold mornings it refuses to start without pre heating the engine(block heater).
And now if I have scared you with the assembly and run in you are not ready to get a "crate tractor". Unless if you have a trusted local mechanic that you can have the crate delivered to and pay him to assemble and ruin it in for you. Total hours should be about 15 to assemble and run it in.
Am I happy with my 284, you bet :thumbsup:. I use it for bringing in the fire wood. Mowing the fields (5' bush hog type mower) and in heavey snow and ice storms plowing the driveway (6' rear blade)

 

[Heywood Jannockitov]

...and pay him to assemble and ruin it...

Sorry, but that made me laugh

 

[Localmotion]

Given the amount of bilateral movement I saw in the first video of the FEL mounts, I say no thanks. That looks like it will go at anytime. Free wouldn't be cheap enough.

Well spotted - but it's not the mounts (which are fixed permanently to the tractor) and it's not a problem...

The movement you can see is the loader where it connects to the mounts - it is a quick fit loader and clearly one of my guys hadn't tightened the lock pins properly...

I did notice it at the time, but because the loader was only doing light work and would be taken off again later the same day, I choose to work with it. The loader is actually much tighter than the dealer fitted one on the Case IH tractor we used to have...

We do not take ANY chinese tractors in on trade, I don't care if its 1/10th the price we wont waste our time on it.

More fool you - we've been dealing in Chinese tractors for many years, and I can assure you that they are very little trouble - the sale of new chinese machinery is a great sideline for a dealer, offering much better margins than the main brands (even with the cost of warrenty).

The key is to have an excellent relationship with the factory to ensure any problems are resolved - which in my experience is something most decent retailers of machinery do anyway?

In my experience, most owners of chinese tractors keep them for life and don't want to trade them in - why bother when the cost of a brand new one is so affordable?

 

[stevem5215]

The key IMO to getting a chinese tractor is to be honest about how much you want to use it. 100hrs a year is what you'd want it for. If you are going to use a tractor for 200hrs a year you don't want Chinese. And be prepared to repair it. Adjustments are common on all machines but on a chinese tractor you need to do them. They are not hard to work on like anything else it requires a good manual (and the chinese chinglish is tough to decode) and with some help on here you can get it done. Parts are a issue as well. If you get one make sure you can get the parts in a reasonable time period. A broken tractor on monday around here can get the parts to you by the weekend to repair it. That's important and you better be handy with a wrench.

Otherwise I tell people to "buy a Kubota" if you can't turn a wrench. They are for people who just want to run a tractor. Not fix it like a hobby sideline.

Steve